#86: How to Build a Personal Brand After a Layoff

Vanita Capobianco (00:00.162)
I always knew that I wanted to tell my layoff story. I said it out loud that I was gonna start a podcast. I had no idea what the hell I was getting into.

Rhona Pierce (00:09.059)
You had no existing audience.

Vanita Capobianco (00:11.854)
How are people ever going to find this if I don't promote it? You have to have the courage to start something. Confidence comes after. After my 9 to 5 and I spend time with my kids and get them to bed, there is this period at 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. I truly, truly believe in the power of small, consistent steps every day.

Rhona Pierce (00:33.226)
One thing you wish someone had told you earlier in life is...

Vanita Capobianco (00:36.674)
For me, it was that don't be afraid to.

Rhona Pierce (00:40.172)
Most people get laid off and go quiet. Vanita Capobianco got loud. She launched a podcast and started showing up across multiple platforms, all with zero audience and zero creator background. A decade into corporate, she decided a layoff wasn't a setback. It was her liftoff. Vanita, welcome to Workfluencer.

Vanita Capobianco (01:00.386)
Thank you so much. So can I tell you that this is my first podcast besides my own? So I am super excited and a little bit nervous at the same time.

Rhona Pierce (01:11.278)
I am so excited and you're going to do great. We had an amazing conversation, like getting to know each other. for folks who haven't met you yet, what's the Vanita Capobianco story in 30 seconds?

Vanita Capobianco (01:23.906)
Gosh, okay. I practiced this because I did look at your podcast. Okay. So I'm a mom, I'm a runner, I'm a podcast host of Laid Off to Lift Off. I am building my personal brand after my nine to five and doing it publicly. My hope is to spread stories of resilience and hope in a time where I think we need it, especially with layoffs every single day. And that's what I hope to do.

and I'm here to tell my story.

Rhona Pierce (01:54.702)
Yes, yes. And oh my gosh, 2025. mean, I think it started 2022, 2023, which was my last layoff. The layoffs are like, they're killing us. It's like every day. So a decade into your corporate career, you were suddenly laid off. That was 2024. What was that moment like for you?

Vanita Capobianco (02:19.022)
Oh my gosh. So actually my first episode was me telling my story and it's only five minutes, but I told that story of I would remember the date and I hate that I remember the date as August 12th, 2024. I got a Slack message from my boss to come to her office. So it was not a random meeting that HR put on my calendar. When I walked in her and my head of department was in there and you could tell like something was about to go down. However, I thought

was walking into a promotion, I did not know that I was about to get the boot. So we had small talk and then he basically told me, you know that layoffs are happening this week and with that your position is eliminated. I do not know what to say. I think I asked about my bonus if it was going to be paid out. The answer was no. And I said, okay. And all the while

In my head, I kept going, do not cry, do not cry, do not let them see you cry. And the moment he walked out, I just broke down and my manager, who I loved, I wrote about her on Women's History Month, LinkedIn post, she ran over and grabbed me and said, Vanita, I'm so sorry, I don't know why this is happening, I don't know. And that moment, I was in shock. And from then on, I knew I had to do something different.

Rhona Pierce (03:46.03)
If you've made it this far into the episode and you're not subscribed yet, now's a good time. What a story. Oh my gosh. I've been laid off four times and I remember all the dates, by the way. It's just something that you just don't forget.

Yeah. For whatever reason, but I had never thought I was getting a promotion. I I always, I always knew what was about to go down, mostly because I was the one that planned layoffs for these companies and they just use my script on me. So it's like, okay, I know what's about to go down. Right. Because I taught you how to do this. Yeah. But it's never easy anyway, even if you're prepared, but I can only imagine if you're thinking it's good news and then, my gosh.

want to hug you because I would have been the same like don't cry don't cry don't cry

Vanita Capobianco (04:39.046)
Yes, I was not going to let him see me cry. think that also like I think back and I was like, how naive was that Benita? How comfortable was that Benita in her role that she thought that was going to happen? And it brought to light all of those feelings that I knew deep down I had because I was there for 10 years. I was going to retire in my head from that company. And I love my team. I loved what the company was doing. But

Yeah, I was just really comfortable in that position and I didn't want to admit it.

Rhona Pierce (05:13.198)
So what made you decide to start creating content after that layoff? Like, was that always the plan or did like something shift?

Vanita Capobianco (05:22.424)
I think after my layoff, it sparked something in me. It sparked something that I wanted to do something on my own. I wanted to put something out there or create something. I didn't know what, but I wanted to create something where I can set myself up to not be in that position again. Because after my layoff for weeks, I would get up with this heavy weight on my chest. I have two small kids.

did not interview at places for so long. I was like, how am I even going to interview? I hate the tell me about yourself question. So all of that was just filled with anxiety. lost, I was the only one in my friend group who was laid off. So I was very lonely. And so I knew that I wanted to do something different. And I knew I wanted to set myself up to be in a place where I didn't have those emotions. And I refused to be in a position where someone could put my name on a spreadsheet.

and changed the trajectory of my life without me having a say in it. And I didn't want to be in that position anymore. So I did the usual things. I applied to jobs. I had coffee chats with people. I reached out to my network. Luckily, in my role, my client group were the talent acquisition team. So throughout the years, I had great relationships with recruiters. So after that,

I reached out to a bunch of them. I didn't care. I asked for help. I told people to write me recommendations on LinkedIn. I was using my network. So I just had random coffee chats. I did everything. How we got to content creation, though, was Instagram algorithm shows me stuff, and they know what to show me. So they show me this lady. Call Maha Abu-Elanin. And Maha is a communications expert.

And she's done all these amazing things. She wrote a book called Seven Steps Self-Reliance. So she was having a program, a personal branding program. And I decided, Benita, you have nothing to lose. Just sign up. So I paid my money. It was hard to pay that money, but I did it. And I just embarked on a six month personal branding small group session with some amazing ladies from around the globe. And

Vanita Capobianco (07:42.722)
I worked through telling your story, what that looked like, and I started posting more. I remember when I was about to launch my newsletter on LinkedIn called Believe and Achieve. And my first article was me telling the story how I was an undocumented immigrant for 10 years. And I wrote that. I sent it to her. And I said, I'm about to post this, but I'm very nervous. And she said, no changes, no comments, just post it.

So I did that and people responded. And even some of my old coworkers responded and told me, one girl in particular told me like she was in a similar situation. So that was comforting and I would have never known that about her. So things like that kept me showing up online and posting and posting. But even before that, during my search for jobs, I believe in words of positive affirmation.

And I created a faceless Instagram called Laid Off to Lift Off, even before that was a podcast. Nobody knew about this account, but I created faceless reels of different sayings. So every night I would go to my little Canva account and make reels and post it. And that was for me. So I started posting content on that little Instagram that nobody knew about.

no traction whatsoever, but it came more with through the personal branding program and posting on LinkedIn.

Rhona Pierce (09:19.98)
I love that story and it's just, it's so important to like, just do it for you. And like, I've seen that it's kind of like a trend that's going on like right now in the past couple of months on Instagram where people are like, I just created this account and I blocked all of my friends and family. No one knows about this. And I think it just gives you the confidence to like do whatever and not worry about what anyone is going to say.

Vanita Capobianco (09:47.082)
100%. Even like when I got more comfortable with posting online, I would post on Instagram, but I wouldn't connect it to my Facebook account because that's where all my family were. And I purposely did not show them any of my content for a while. And I have no idea why. don't know what you... And I thought about it. like, your family and friends are not your audience. So you have to get over that hump and just post it. And honestly, they have...

been some of my biggest s like it, they watch it. aunties and turn dad watch you.

Rhona Pierce (10:30.03)
Yes, I can totally relate to that. have my aunt in Panama. She is like my number one fan. She watches stuff and it's like one of my mom's friends shout out to Giselle. She's always like sends my mom stuff and it's like, Oh, look at what Rona did and all of this stuff. And it's like, they're not my audience. They are 100 % not my audience, but it's just like the support. But I get it. At first, you don't like you don't want

the you don't know what they're going to say. Yeah. And I think it hurts more if someone that you know, says something bad about your content or tells you like, you look silly or something like that over some random person on the internet.

Vanita Capobianco (11:12.046)
Yeah, and you know, honestly too, I think my husband too at first didn't quite understand why I was doing it. But eventually he understood that it meant a lot to me and it was kind of therapeutic too to put stuff out there. And I was just playing around with it. And then most recently, this is not about him, but he started his own content creation. He does get more views than I do on YouTube, but now he understands. He's like, this is not easy. And it was so funny seeing him

record a video for the first time and he's like, this is weird. I'm like, now you get it.

Rhona Pierce (11:46.478)
With me, it was the opposite because my husband's the one who had done video and all of that. The first video I did when I asked him to help me, my gosh, we will never release the behind the scenes of that because you would think, no, you would think that we hate each other and that our marriage, because I was so hard because he's used to directing. He's done independent films and stuff like that. So he's directing me like,

say it again. And I was like, I already said it. And he's like, that's not going to come across good on camera. And like, now looking back, I have all of those lessons from him and it's ironic. And we always talk about it that now for a living, I help people and I direct them on camera and stuff like that. like those initial things you would think we hated each other and we were headed for divorce. Yeah. And obviously is wasn't that we love each other and everything, but like, we just know we can't do videos together.

Vanita Capobianco (12:44.59)
There you go. Well, now you know. And even like I said, my first episode for my podcast was five minutes of me telling my story. The amount of work that went on to produce five minutes was crazy. I rehearsed that I wrote a script. I just recorded it over and over. My lighting is awful. My you know, I think my head is tilted a little bit too much. But like the amount of time it took to just do that.

and get it to a place where I was comfortable publishing it. It was crazy. So sometimes we are our own worst critic and you just need to get over that hump and just do it.

Rhona Pierce (13:26.328)
So tell me about when, okay, you've started doing your personal branding, you've started LinkedIn and Instagram. How did the podcast idea come?

Vanita Capobianco (13:38.158)
I always knew that I wanted to tell my layoff story a year after it happened because I knew a year later, I wanted to see what that Benita had would become. And yes, I thought about just doing a boring LinkedIn newsletter, just words. But then I was like, no. And I knew I wanted to be on a podcast, but I didn't know how to pitch myself or who to turn to. So I was like, you know what? I'm just going to build my own. And so I did. I had no idea what.

the hell I was getting into. It is not easy as just turning on a mic and figuring out what software we're using. It's a lot of work that goes into podcasting that I've learned now 18 episodes in.

Rhona Pierce (14:23.15)
It's definitely not the easiest format to start with. So I'm impressed that of all the things you started with a podcast because there's so many moving pieces.

Vanita Capobianco (14:35.79)
Yeah, I had to learn that because I'm a one woman show. Like I reached out again to the personal branding program that I did. Somebody had a podcast and I was like, hey Deb, I don't know how do you even start a podcast? And she sent me like the microphone link, the Riverside link. She sent me all these like great tips and like, all right, I'm going to roll with it. I'm going see how this goes. And nobody tells you about the editing, the editing that goes on behind the scenes.

that I had to get a little bit more comfortable with. So the first few episodes were little rough.

Rhona Pierce (15:14.624)
It's hard and I always tell people even though I own an agency where we produce podcasts for people, I specifically don't work with new podcasters unless it's a company and people sometimes are like kind of offended when I tell them that I'm like, you actually need to go in and I recommend you editing your first few episodes, learning what your style is, learning what you want because that way you can tell us because I can tell you all day, every day how I want to do stuff. it's like,

Once you just, think, and you can correct me if I'm wrong, but don't you just learn so much about what you want to do and how to be on the other side of it. Once you've edited, you know, it's like, I need to leave some space between words so that I can cut it if I need to. Yes.

Vanita Capobianco (16:02.168)
Originally, my plan was to do 15 minutes or less episodes because that's really all I can handle. And then eventually, people were telling their stories and it went beyond 15 minutes. I always knew I didn't want an hour. I didn't want 30 minutes. Some guests have gone 30 minutes just because of who they are. But for the most part, most of my episodes are 20 minutes or less. And that's what I knew. And so I started off intros to the first couple as in 15 minutes or less, it's this episode.

So I knew I had to cut that intro. That's not going to work anymore. And I didn't have any music at the beginning. I didn't have any transition to end the video at the end. So all those things I had to learn. And also, nobody sounds perfect in real life when they're talking. So when you remove filler words, when you remove pauses, nobody's that perfect. So you have to leave in some of those things.

for it to make sense. Yes, you want to cut out any dead space, any echoes, whatever have you, but sometimes it makes sense to leave in those filler words.

Rhona Pierce (17:07.177)
Yes. Yes. was telling some someone else I was talking to, I think another guest that like my team and I, we've learned and we've always known this, but like if you cut out every single, or like, like I say, like a lot, as you could probably notice, it just sounds robotic. And we've done some episodes like that. They do not work. The people don't listen to it. When you leave the humanity in it, you leave the arms. Yes. You're going to remove the like,

Um, if you go like that too long and, but hopefully we'll leave this one inch for the example, but like you're human. People are listening. It's such an intimate thing. A podcast.

Vanita Capobianco (17:46.446)
Yeah, I had one guest. was telling her story and she said, can we just go back to like me saying something else? And like, yes, do whatever you want. Like I can edit out whatever after. But that obviously took out when she said that. But I made sure to edit it so it flowed properly. So in instances like that, that does come up. But yeah, podcasting has taught me a lot. So props to all the podcasters. And what is it? Some crazy statistics that

most podcasters don't last beyond, I don't know, episode.

Rhona Pierce (18:21.268)
five episodes and then there's another like 10 episodes. Yeah. Yeah. It's not easy. No. So you had no existing audience. How did you get your first listeners and like your first subscribers?

Vanita Capobianco (18:34.72)
My first listeners were actually my close friends who I worked with before and I said it out loud that I was going to start a podcast. And I figured that anything I want to do now, I have to say it out loud to people in a public space because that's how I am actually going to do it. So I soft launched it and sent it to my close friends. And I said, hey, this is what I'm doing. And then I wrote a LinkedIn post about it.

I was like, if I want this to be something, I have to promote it. How are people ever gonna find this if I don't promote it? So yes, I wrote a LinkedIn post about it. I said, I'm gonna do this. I said, this is my story. And that's how it started. I just had to have the courage to do it. And I often say this, like, you have to have the courage to start something. Confidence comes after. So don't, you'll never be confident in what you're starting new.

You have to just have the courage to start.

Rhona Pierce (19:37.058)
Yes, I love that. And I mean, it's so true. It's so, so true. If you don't promote your own app, that's my pet peeve. I actually don't go on people's podcasts as a guest. If I see that they don't promote their own episodes, because it's like, if you're not wanting people to hear this, it's not a build it and they will come type of thing.

Vanita Capobianco (20:00.494)
Exactly.

Rhona Pierce (20:01.472)
It's like, hey people, have a, and even though I've been doing this for two years, there's still people who I meet. I was just at a conference and they're like, you have a podcast. I'm like,

The t-shirt says work like I only wear this everywhere I go. It's pretty much my only uniform. says workfluents or podcasts. Yes, I have a podcast and I promote and I only talk about it. I feel, but there's always people who just don't know. So that's so important to like keep at it and you do a great job. I always see your clips. You're always talking about the podcast and stuff. like you have to love it. It's really you have.

Vanita Capobianco (20:37.24)
to. I and how I get my guess is I scour LinkedIn. I scour TikTok. Substack has become a really popular one too. But TikTok people are so open to sharing their layoff stories on TikTok. And I was very opposed to going on TikTok. Like I never had a TikTok account before 2025. But I obviously like if I really want to do this, I need to go on these platforms and get over that foolishness. So I go on TikTok. I message people or I

put in a comment, obviously I write something of value, but I also say, hey, I host this podcast called laid off to lift off. People share their stories and stories of resilience. If that is something you want to hear, please give it a listen. And that's, and then all these other people see that comment and like it, and then they too see it. So commenting and promoting it that way has, been a success. Now I don't know the statistics of like what a good listener count is.

But streams, downloads, I have no idea what's actually good. But I do look at the Riverside statistics. And I think it had like 30 listeners in the past 24 hours. I'm like, somebody's listening.

Rhona Pierce (21:50.818)
That's good. no, that's it's podcast statistics. That's a whole other conversation. It's just I don't really know. There's really no way to like get like reliable ones. think the most reliable ones I got was a platform that they accidentally let me test it out for 30 days and accidentally because I'm definitely not their ICP. It's five hundred dollars a month for the analytics only. Yeah. When they told me because I was like,

is it at the end of the trial? They're like, well, I'm like, yeah, well, great. But podcast analytics are pretty expensive. And by the way, shout out to Bumper. If anyone has the $500 a month, amazing, amazing platform and great team, great people. But yeah, those are the most reliable ones. So it's hard. All these benchmarks, it's just hard. To me, the success of a podcast is

Is it doing what you wanted it to do? It doesn't matter how many people listen to it. It's the people that listen to it. Are they getting what you wanted them?

Vanita Capobianco (23:00.418)
Yeah, and I started this to share my story, but I wanted people to see other people's stories too and what they're doing after a layoff because some a lot of people start their own business or go into content creation or do amazing things or go back to just finding a regular job, a better job. So it's just so much you can do. And I think it's important to tell those stories. And we talk a lot. Almost all my guests talk about

mental health and how that is impacted by a layoff. Community, attributing their value to a job title. Like all of these things, pretty much anybody who's had a layoff can relate to. And I know for me, like I said, I was the only one in my friend group that got laid off. So I lost that sense of community and I was very lonely. So I took all of that and came up with this podcast idea because it was selfishly for me too.

Rhona Pierce (24:00.654)
Yeah, so you're back in corporate now and you're a mom and I heard that you're running half marathons or training for

Vanita Capobianco (24:08.942)
marathon. You don't see it in the view, but there is a medal there that I ran last October.

Rhona Pierce (24:14.742)
All right, that's a lot. How do you protect your time for content?

Vanita Capobianco (24:19.95)
So I'm building my personal brand because I never want to be in that position again that I was in in 2024. But after my nine to five and I spend time with my kids and get them to bed, there is this period at 9 p.m. to 12 a.m. that I dedicate to myself. I take my computer upstairs and edit podcasts. I come up with my newsletter articles that I write.

I am learning something new about AI, Claude, whatever. I'm attending other people's free events. I'm investing in myself. No 9 to 12 at night is always the same. But I truly, truly believe in the power of small, consistent steps every day. And not every day is going to be the same, but to do something to move forward with wherever I want to be.

So that's what I do. I work during 9 p.m. to 12 p.m. every night.

Rhona Pierce (25:24.142)
Do you think that helps you like because I know that period after a layoff and even after you've gotten a job and stuff like that You're like I never want to be in the spot again So does that just having that consistency give you the motivation and the security of like I am in control of this Yeah as much as I can

Vanita Capobianco (25:45.386)
much as I can. Like if a layoff happened to me again, one, it'll be one hell of a plot twist to my podcast. But it'd make a good episode. But if it happens again, I wouldn't feel like I was in a bad place. Yes, I would have the anxiety of a stable income. Yes, I would, you know, be anxious for a little bit, but I could lean on more people that I've connected with now. I can put myself out there more. I can be in a better position. So if

That ever happens, I'm in a much better place than 2024 Vanita.

Rhona Pierce (26:20.41)
And I mean, maybe someday I'll be on your podcast and I'll my story. But I could tell you that after my fourth layoff, which was in 2023, actually that one was I knew ahead of time because I also had to be part of shutting down the company. So I knew ahead of time that I was going to get laid off. And I remember I was in Panama when I found out I had just had a death in my family and stuff like that. And I called my husband and we literally laughed. We're like, here we go again. But that's

Vanita Capobianco (26:24.92)
You will get that.

Rhona Pierce (26:49.496)
How much? It's like, we knew it was going to suck and all of that stuff. But it's like, I had already prepared so many things that it's like, okay, just going back to doing this full time again at content and we'll take it from there. It's just, but yes, you have to have, I think what I see a lot of people do is they get laid off, they do the content, they get a job and then they stop. And at that moment you set yourself up back to be in the same position.

Vanita Capobianco (27:18.232)
Yeah, and you know, a lot of people ask me to like, what is your job? Feel about your podcast. And I'm like, they're fine with it. I have people who come up to me and say like, your podcast is doing really well. Or like, I listened to your podcast. I'm like, you do? Why? But thank you. And they know that it is something that I am passionate about. I talk about it freely now. At one point, I was not telling anybody I work about it. But now I lead with that.

And it's been great. even like had my VP, do like an interviewer thing and accomplishments and she wanted to put that in the slide. I'm like, no, don't do that. But now I'm like, yeah, you sure.

Rhona Pierce (28:03.214)
I mean, I think also once you're so secure and that this is what you're doing for your future and for yourself, your personal brand, your podcast, whatever you do, you also go into companies with that energy. It's like, I literally don't care what they think about my podcast. I'm not in corporate right now, but if I were to go back, and I have gone back with when I've been a content creator and I don't care. And yes, I worked at a company that had issues with it and like that was their problem.

left that company on my own. Yeah. Because there it's really not grounds to fire you legally unless you're doing like something in like talking about them or you're in competition with them or something like that. Other than that, it's just like, well, you're just going to have to deal with your jealousy and like that's a you problem. But this is what I do for my future.

Vanita Capobianco (28:53.814)
Yes, and that's one thing too I would emphasize is that I barely, if at all, talk about where I work. I never mention them by name. Yes, you could go on LinkedIn and see where I work and that's fine. But most if not all of my content on LinkedIn specifically never references them. If I attend an event that I think people should know about that company, yes, I will post that. But I barely mention the work I do there or them by name.

Rhona Pierce (29:23.982)
And that's the safest way. think where people get in trouble is where they don't read the rules. Cause also, by the way, when you sign in to up for a company, when you start working, you sign a ton of papers, you should actually read what you because a lot of them have things that prevent you. And then people get surprised, but it's like, don't talk about your company stuff. Don't film at work unless you have their permission. Don't be sharing like, Oh, this is the

document that I wrote for work. It's like, no, that does not belong to you. That's where you get in trouble.

Vanita Capobianco (29:56.052)
Exactly. Like I keep that very separate and my whole thing is the power of resilience and motivation and mindset and being a parent, a working mom doing all this. That's really what I post and honestly what gets the most traction is just being a normal human. So I keep it to those areas where I am passionate about. Yes, I love a good applicant tracking system to implement. get me wrong. It's been my thing for years, but

I barely talk about.

Rhona Pierce (30:28.128)
And if you do just clear it with your company. That's what I always tell people. Float it by your boss. Hey, I wanna do, we just implemented this new ATS. It's so cool. I love the vendor. Can I do a quick shout out post for them?

Vanita Capobianco (30:42.498)
Yeah, and I've seen people, other people do that and that's great. And I'm like, that's actually pretty cool that you're saying that, that you've done this and implemented that.

Rhona Pierce (30:52.91)
Yeah. So when we spoke, you mentioned that 2025 was your yes year. Like what does that actually mean for you and how has it shaped how you approach content?

Vanita Capobianco (31:03.898)
It's, so I said yes to a lot of things. Yes, the personal branding program. Yes, to posting more online. Yes, to a bunch of networking events and coffee chats with people. Yes, to the half marathon. So all of that was my yes. What it made me do was put myself in uncomfortable situations and get comfortable with it.

So that's, it built, and like I said, it takes courage first, the confidence comes later. So in 2025, my confidence of going out there and talking to people, striking up a conversation, that's really what happened in 2025. I built my online presence. By all means, it's not anything crazy, but I've definitely shown up more online in 2025. And that-

was really built out of saying yes to a bunch of things and saying yes to random LinkedIn messages sometimes vetted out, of course, but say yes to more things and you'll be surprised who you meet.

Rhona Pierce (32:10.688)
Yeah. So we just wrapped Q1 of 2026. Did you keep that same energy? Did you bring that same yes energy into this year?

Vanita Capobianco (32:19.244)
Yeah, so I actually did like four separate videos about my Q1 recap. So I talked about, in like the end of December, I made a 20, 26 golds list and it was get to 20 episodes of laid off to lift off, do speaking events or workshops, host a LinkedIn live, learn how to swim, drive on a highway, because I've never driven on a highway before.

just attend more in real life events. So I've been chipping away at all of those. I'm gonna surpass the 20 episodes pretty soon. So I think I need to redo that goal. And I'm showing up to more in-person real life events and has been great. I've been doing a ton of coffee chats with people along the way. I'm going to do a LinkedIn live. And now that I say it on this podcast, now I have to do it. So I'm working on that.

And walking a mile every in 2026, that has been going strong and I'm super proud of that. So wrapping up Q1 has been over 100 miles walked or ran, and I highly recommend it.

Rhona Pierce (33:30.206)
Yes, yes, yes. I have to and I'm publicly going to say it because I try to walk three to six ish miles per day. But then some days I'm like, well, yesterday I did six. I don't know. It's the everyday that is so helpful. So yes, I'm going to inspired by you. I'm going to do like I'm going to walk every single day.

Vanita Capobianco (33:52.952)
I have a Strava group going. It's only three people, like my brother-in-law and my co-worker, ex-co-worker, but I'll send it to you so you can enjoy.

Rhona Pierce (34:01.198)
Yes, public accountability always helps. So what doors has creating content open for you, like even this early in your journey?

Vanita Capobianco (34:12.734)
met some really incredible people, yourself included, because why one of the things actually was to be on five people's podcasts other than myself in 2026. So you're the first one. And I think I have one more scheduled. getting getting to five eventually somehow. But it's just opened me up to show that I am doing something online through the podcast and my content.

and people will respond to that and meet with you or invite you to things that you probably would have never been able to do before. So when people say that they hate posting on LinkedIn, I say, do it. Like what's the worst that can happen? Just do it, tell your story, tell about something you're working on or interested or just post. And I think that's the hard part for people, but for me, it's definitely

allowed me to meet some incredible people along the way.

Rhona Pierce (35:14.434)
That's amazing. And that's really the best part of content creation. If you ask me, like, yes, getting when you get to the point where you get paid for your content and all that, that feels great. But to me, still, when I go to conferences and I can meet people that I've met on the Internet and it's like, my gosh.

And it's like, it looks like a class reunion. All you do is say, like, I wish I could have someone follow me around. All you do is see people hug each other and you just meet amazing, amazing people that you would have never met if you didn't put yourself out there because like you would have never crossed paths.

Vanita Capobianco (35:51.04)
Yeah. So actually funny to say that because I saw, I forget the name of the company who has the Guess Who game that came out with all of your faces on it. And then all these different recruiters were posting about it. I'm like, do they all know each other? Like what is happening? And then I see you guys at Transform because I follow all of you guys. I'm like, do they just all know each other? Like, how does that?

Rhona Pierce (35:57.902)
Peace, bye.

Rhona Pierce (36:12.952)
So some of us do know each other and it's funny because when we are approached for these things, because it hasn't been launched or anything, there's all this like you can't talk about it to your friends. And also, like I don't necessarily talk to my friends like, I just got this deal. I just got this deal. just.

So when we all get the box and then we see other people, it's like, wait, you are doing this deal too? And we were just there together. We didn't know we were both on the same box. Like I met someone who like we had no clue. And then all of a sudden I'm like, wait, they're on the thing and you're just texting them. It was a really fun thing. I'm working on my post. It's being worked on as we speak. So I can't wait to share mine. Yeah.

If you've ever watched the show, you know there's a segment at the end and I thought it's time for you to say it with your chest. So no softening, no corporate polish. Just I'm going to throw something at you and whatever comes to mind first. Are you ready?

Vanita Capobianco (37:10.748)
I guess I have to be sure.

Rhona Pierce (37:13.708)
All right, the worst advice women get about navigating their career is...

Vanita Capobianco (37:19.438)
to just be grateful. I actually wrote a post about this that you can be grateful for where you are, but still want more for yourself and that's okay.

Rhona Pierce (37:31.712)
Love that. One thing you wish someone had told you earlier in life is

Vanita Capobianco (37:38.744)
I also ask this to people. For me, it was that don't be afraid to negotiate. And I say this because as an undocumented immigrant for 10 years and I got my first real legal job, I thought I had made it when I made 40K as a coordinator. And I was like, man, I'm rich now. And I did not negotiate that first job or even the second job. But I wish I had negotiated more.

And I would say this to any women starting out early in their career or even advanced in their career, negotiate your worth because they are low balling you no matter what.

Rhona Pierce (38:18.486)
Yes. And I follow that up and I always tell people you can in most cases negotiate your severance. So when you're laid off, like have that second of like, I'm so sad for me. And then be like, let's get the most money you can get. Companies don't like you to know that. But yes, you can negotiate your severance as well. The biggest lie people tell themselves about why they're not creating content is.

Vanita Capobianco (38:48.75)
Biggest lie, that I'm not ready. I think you're never ready. And I say this again, it's like you have to have courage and confidence will come later. It's, you just do it, man. You just put it out there. Even if it's a simple, hey, my name is Vanita and this is why I wanna do this. Just start doing it like I did.

A Stan challenge, the company Stan had a Deer to Post challenge in February, 30 days post. And I did that. And the first video compared to the last video has been so different. And you could see the growth, just consistency post. And I know everybody hears that all the time. But really, it is really that simple. And you don't have to worry about editing. You don't have to worry about all that. All that will come. But is

There has, you have no excuse not to.

Rhona Pierce (39:46.772)
Yes. Okay, last one. Hill you will die on.

Vanita Capobianco (39:52.536)
would die on. that's a good one. You when you're a mom building your personal brand that you can't do it. You can. If somebody wants to be in a position, a better position, they will find the time. So don't believe that you don't have time to do it. Even if it's something small, even if it's 15 minutes of your time, you can do it.

Rhona Pierce (40:21.678)
100%. And when people hear consistency, they think that means posting every day. Consistency can mean posting once a month. And if that's all you have time for, post once a month.

Vanita Capobianco (40:33.27)
Exactly, exactly. I don't post every day. I take the weekends off sometimes. Like you have to have that shut off period because it will, it will like consume you sometimes, especially if you're looking at view counts and followers, which I've learned and comments. my gosh. The first mean comment that you ever get will shake you a little bit, but you got to get past those trolls.

Rhona Pierce (40:57.164)
And you'll remember it for whatever reason I remember. I remember the mean comments still till this day, so many years into it, so many comments into it. You remember it and you shouldn't, but keep going, keep going.

Vanita Capobianco (41:12.024)
Keep going. had a guest tell me after we recorded and he has like a million followers now. He is like, Anita, just keep going. And that is what I hold onto. I hold onto a little bit of advice from all these podcasts guests that I have to, because they just, they're doing great things and they're great people. And I just, I, you will see often if you follow me on LinkedIn that I do reuse their advice over and over and they don't know that I keep it.

in the back of my head, it's also a good reminder to them too when I do post it.

Rhona Pierce (41:46.678)
Yeah, that's a great part of podcasting. You learn so much from such interesting people. So sure. I have learned so much from you and I really enjoyed this conversation. Where can listeners connect with you?

Vanita Capobianco (41:57.496)
Where can?

Vanita Capobianco (42:02.164)
first and foremost LinkedIn, go ahead, Benita Kapupienko, and please subscribe to the podcast and more importantly, share it with someone who needs it today. It is an easy to listen, I'm not going to say the number, but less than 30 minutes of people telling their layoff stories where they are now and inspiring advice to help others. can catch it on Spotify, Apple, and YouTube.

Rhona Pierce (42:27.956)
and I will link all of that in the show notes. Thank you so much for being on the show today.

Vanita Capobianco (42:33.39)
Thank you for having me. Appreciate it.

Rhona Pierce (42:36.142)
If you're enjoying the Workfluencer pod, share it with someone who's changing how we talk about work or who should be. And hey, if this episode gave you ideas or inspiration, leave us a five-star review. Reviews help other listeners find us. And honestly, it makes my day. This show is produced by Workfluencer Media. Visit workfluencermedia.com to learn how we help companies build video-first content systems that attract, engage, and retain qualified talent.

That's WorkfluencerMedia.com. Thanks for listening and I'll chat with you next week.